This invention relates to substitutes for natural beeswax.
Natural beeswax has been utilized in various cosmetic formulations for nearly 2,000 years. Yet, to date, very few effective substitutes for natural beeswax have been found. Beeswax, of course, is a secretion of the worker bee, which contains various hydrocarbons, fatty alcohols, fatty acids, and esters, the compostion of which will vary from source to souce. The exact compostion is highly complex, and essentially impossible to duplicate exactly. Listed in Table I is a generally accepted composition for yellow beeswax.
TABLE I ______________________________________ YELLOW BEESWAX ______________________________________ Esters of wax acids: 71% Simple esters: Myricyl palmitate, C.sub.15 H.sub.31 CO . O . C.sub.30 H.sub.61 (23%) Lacceryl palmitate, C.sub.15 H.sub.31 CO . O C.sub.32 H.sub.65 (2%) Myricyl cerotate, C.sub.26 H.sub.53 CO . O . C.sub.30 H.sub.61 (12%) Myricyl hypogaeate, C.sub.15 H.sub.29 CO . O . C.sub.30 H.sub.61 (12%) Hydroxy esters: Ceryl hydroxypalmitate, C.sub.15 H.sub.30 (OH) . CO . O . C.sub.26 H.sub.53 (8-9%) Acid esters (4-4.5%) Diesters (6-6.5%) Acid diesters, triesters, hydroxy diesters (3-3.5%) Cholesteryl esters of fatty acids: 1% Cholesteryl isovalerate Coloring matter: 1,3-hydroxyflavone (mp 285.degree. C.) 0.3% Lactone: .omega.-myristolactone (mp 33.degree.-34.degree. C.) 0.6% Free alcohols: C.sub.34 -C.sub.36 1-1.25% Free wax acids 13.5-14.5% Normal acids (mp 77.5.degree.-70.degree. C., molecular weight 412) Saturated: Lignoceric acid (1-1.5%) Cerotic acid (3.8-4.4%) Montanic acid Melissic acid (2%) Psyllic acid (1.3-1.5%) Unsaturated: Hypogaeic acid, C.sub.16 H.sub.30 O.sub.2 (1.5%) Hydrocarbons: 10.5-13.5% Saturated: Pentacosane, C.sub.25 H.sub.52 (0.3%) Heptacosane, C.sub.27 H.sub.56 (0.3%) Nonacosane, C.sub.29 H.sub.60 (1-2%) Hentriacontane, C.sub.31 H.sub.64 (8-9%) Unsaturated: Melene, C.sub.30 H.sub.60 (2.5%) Moisture and mineral impurities 1-2% Mean molecular weight 570 Ester number 72-76 ______________________________________
In recent years there has been a great endeavor to develop commercially acceptable synthetic beeswax compositions. The reasons for such an endeavor are basically two-fold, (1) the need to supplement the supply of natural beeswax and (2) the need of cosmetic formulators to obtain compositions having consistent physical properties so that it is not necessary to reformulate every time a new lot of natural beeswax is utilized in production.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,754,033; 3,914,131; and B 303,702, represent one manufacturer's endeavor to obtain a satisfactory synthetic beeswax composition.
The foregoing U.S. patents all deal with a synthetic beeswax substitute. Such a substitute comprises (1) a high molecular weight .alpha.-alkyl substituted branched monocarboxylic acid containing from about 20 to about 60 carbon atoms, the alkyl branching containing from about 1 to about 16 carbon atoms, (2) a microcrystalline petroleum wax, and (3) mixed glycerides of saturated mono- and di-carboxylic acids selected from the group consisting of Japan wax and compositions obtained by the reaction of 1 to 4 moles of a monocarboxylic acid containing 14 to 20 carbon atoms, 0.25 to 1.5 moles of a short-chained dicarboxylic acid containing 6 to 12 carbon atoms and 1 mole of glycerine.
The foregoing U.S. patents also indicate that other synthetic substitutes for natural beeswax have been suggested, such as the esterification product for montanic acid, ethylene glycol, and oxidized paraffin, as well as the waxes obtained by esterifying pentaerythritol with saturated fatty acids and maleic anhydride. It has also been indicated that other substitutes for natural beeswax are the products obtained by oxidizing high melting ozocerites and ceresins which are subsequently esterified with an alcohol containing from 1 to 30 carbon atoms.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,073,706 teaches that certain esters of mono- and poly-carboxylic acids containing at least 10 carbon atoms and mono- and poly-hydric alcohols containing at least 2 carbon atoms may be utilized in the waxy portion of aerosol floor care preparations. U.S. Pat. No. 3,127,440 discloses that the dialkyl (C.sub.30 to C.sub.60) esters of 1,4-dicarboxylic acids 4 carbon atoms are useful as hard wax formulations. U.S. Pat. No. 2,911,309 discloses that certain ester products are useful as rust preventive compostions, there being no disclosure that such esters are useful as waxes of any sort.
Although, there have been available certain commercial synthetic beeswax formulations, there still exists a need for a commercially acceptable replacement for natural beeswax, especially for use in cosmetic formulations.